Aqua Julia
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The Aqua Julia (or Iulia) is a
Roman aqueduct The Romans constructed aqueducts throughout their Republic and later Empire, to bring water from outside sources into cities and towns. Aqueduct water supplied public baths, latrines, fountains, and private households; it also supported min ...
built in 33 BC by
Agrippa Agrippa may refer to: People Antiquity * Agrippa (mythology), semi-mythological king of Alba Longa * Agrippa (astronomer), Greek astronomer from the late 1st century * Agrippa the Skeptic, Skeptic philosopher at the end of the 1st century * Ag ...
under
Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...
to supply the city of Rome. The building of the aqueduct quite some time, the works begun in 40 BC. The length of the aqueduct was , and its daily discharge was .


History

The aqueduct was repaired by
Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...
only a few years after its had been completed, an inscription describing the works having been done in 5 BC. Additional repaires were done in 79 AD by
Titus Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September AD 81) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death, becoming the first Roman emperor ever to succeed h ...
, and during the 2nd century AD, around 196 AD, it was expanded further north (up to the Viminal Gate). Later, during the rule of
Severan dynasty The Severan dynasty, sometimes called the Septimian dynasty, ruled the Roman Empire between 193 and 235. It was founded by the emperor Septimius Severus () and Julia Domna, his wife, when Septimius emerged victorious from civil war of 193 - 197, ...
, the aqueduct underwent again extensive repairs in 196 AD by Severus and in 212 AD by
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname Caracalla (; ), was Roman emperor from 198 to 217 AD, first serving as nominal co-emperor under his father and then r ...
, and an additional channel was added to it. Though some remains of later repairs have been found, their dating has not been established.


Route

Though
Frontinus Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. 40 – 103 AD) was a Roman civil engineer, author, soldier and senator of the late 1st century AD. He was a successful general under Domitian, commanding forces in Roman Britain, and on the Rhine and Danube frontier ...
stated that the springs were two miles to the right of the twelfth mile of the
via Latina The Via Latina (Latin for "Latin Road") was a Roman road of Italy, running southeast from Rome for about 200 kilometers. Route It led from the Porta Latina in the Aurelian walls of Rome to the pass of Mount Algidus; it was important in the ea ...
, the source of the Aqua Iulia is situated approximately a half-mile north of the abbey of
Grottaferrata Grottaferrata () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, situated on the lower slopes of the Alban Hills, southeast of Rome. It has grown up around the Abbey of Santa Maria di Grottaferrata, founded in 1004. N ...
at the present bridge of the "Squarciarelli", not far from those that fed the
Aqua Tepula The Aqua Tepula is an ancient Roman aqueduct completed in 125 BC by censors Gnaeus Servilius Caepio and Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla. The water the aqueduct carried was tepid, and probably thus unpalatable. It is not known how much water ...
aqueduct. Given the proximity to the sources of the Tepula, the two conduits converged and then travelled together underground from a point not yet identified, up to the ''limaria'' pool (the settling basin) where they mixed and which was located in the current Capannelle area near the
Aqua Marcia The Aqua Marcia () is a long Roman aqueduct, and the longest of List of aqueducts in the city of Rome, eleven aqueducts that supplied the city of ancient Rome, Rome. The aqueduct was built between 144–140 BC. The still-functioning Acqua Fe ...
. From there the conduits separated again, continuing on the surface and using, for about 9.6 km, the arches already built for the Aqua Marcia aqueduct, suitably restructured to support the conduits. The triple duct is still visible in the stretches of arches left standing, with the Aqua Tepula on top. They reached the city at ''ad spem veterem'', near
Porta Maggiore The Porta Maggiore ("Larger Gate"), or Porta Prenestina, is one of the eastern gates in the ancient but well-preserved 3rd-century Aurelian Walls of Rome. Through the gate ran two ancient roads: the Via Praenestina and the Via Labicana. The Via Pr ...
. From here the conduits used the
Aurelian Aurelian (; ; 9 September ) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 270 to 275 AD during the Crisis of the Third Century. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited the Roman Empire after it had nearly disinte ...
walls and crossed via Tiburtina on an arch which became
Porta Tiburtina Porta Tiburtina or Porta San Lorenzo is a gate in the Aurelian Walls of Rome, Italy, through which the Via Tiburtina exits the city. History The gate originally was an arch, built under Augustus, in the point in which three aqueducts (Aqua Ma ...
. The route then returned underground, passed the
Viminal The Viminal Hill ( ; ; ) is the smallest of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. A finger-shape cusp pointing toward central Rome between the Quirinal Hill to the northwest and the Esquiline Hill to the southeast, it is home to the Teatro dell'Ope ...
gate, where Termini Station stands today, and ended near the
Porta Collina The Colline Gate (Latin ''Porta Collina'') was a landmark in ancient Rome, supposed to have been built by Servius Tullius, semi-legendary king of Rome 578–535 BC. The gate stood at the north end of the Servian Wall, and past it were two im ...
, where the main distribution ''castellum'' was, near the current via XX Settembre. It may have fed the nymphaeum called ''Lacus Orphei'' as shown on the map of
Rodolfo Lanciani Rodolfo Amedeo Lanciani (1 January 1845 – 22 May 1929) was an Italian archaeologist, a pioneering student of ancient Roman topography. Among his many excavations was that of the House of the Vestals in the Roman Forum. Lanciani earned LL.D. ...
. By using 17 ''castella divisorum'' the Aqua Iulia, together with the Tepula, supplied the
Caelian The Caelian Hill ( ; ; ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. Geography The Caelian Hill is a moderately long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill overlooks a plateau from whi ...
, Esquiline, Viminale,
Quirinale The Quirinal Palace ( ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, the main official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporziano, an estate on the outskirts of Rome, som ...
, Campidoglio,
Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.
and Piccolo Aventine hills, in addition to the Fora. After the first repairs carried out by Augustus between 11 and 4 BC, others were done by
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname Caracalla (; ), was Roman emperor from 198 to 217 AD, first serving as nominal co-emperor under his father and then r ...
and then by
Alexander Severus Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander (1 October 208 – March 235), also known as Alexander Severus, was Roman emperor from 222 until 235. He was the last emperor from the Severan dynasty. Alexander took power in 222, when he succeeded his slain co ...
who used the water to supply the monumental fountain of the nymphaeum Alexandri (or Trophies of Marius) still visible in the Piazza Vittorio. Frontinus states that, prior to the construction of the Aqua Claudia, the Marcia and Iulia supplied the Caelian and the Aventine.Frontinus ii.76, 87 In Frontinus's own lifetime, a section of the Marcia was diverted at Spes Vetus and was delivered to the reservoirs of the former hill.


Possible branch

Some arches remain in the Piazza Guglielmo Pepe, which suggests that a branch ran to the Nymphaeum Alexandri. The identification of this branch with the Aqua Iulia is dependent on the ''specus'' (channel) that runs upon it being only 0.3 m below the bottom of the specus of the aqueduct at
Porta Maggiore The Porta Maggiore ("Larger Gate"), or Porta Prenestina, is one of the eastern gates in the ancient but well-preserved 3rd-century Aurelian Walls of Rome. Through the gate ran two ancient roads: the Via Praenestina and the Via Labicana. The Via Pr ...
, which is at 63.7 m above sea-level. However, the level of the bottom of the Aqua Iulia located just outside Porta Maggiore is given as 57.4 m above sea-level. If this is accurate, the branch must have originated from the
Aqua Claudia Aqua Claudia ("the Claudius, Claudian water") was an ancient Roman aqueduct that, like the Aqua Anio Novus, was begun by Emperor Caligula (37–41 AD) in 38 AD and finished by Emperor Claudius (41–54 AD) in 52 AD. It was the eighth aqueduct to ...
or the Anio Novus.


Marker stones

Nine ''
cippi A () was a low, round, or rectangular pedestal set up by the Ancient Romans for purposes such as a milestone or a boundary post. They were also used for somewhat differing purposes by the Etruscans and Carthaginians. Roman cippi Roman cippi we ...
'' are known, all dated from the time of Augustus. No. 302 has been found near the springs, and 281 not far south of the abbey; others (157, 156, 154, 153) have come to light at Capannelle near the seventh mile of the via Latina, before the channel begins to run above ground upon the arches of the
Aqua Marcia The Aqua Marcia () is a long Roman aqueduct, and the longest of List of aqueducts in the city of Rome, eleven aqueducts that supplied the city of ancient Rome, Rome. The aqueduct was built between 144–140 BC. The still-functioning Acqua Fe ...
. The aforementioned group has been dated back to the 14–11 BC restoration. However, another cippus has been located, north of the abbey, bearing the number 2. It dates from 14 BC, and is, it is presumed, the result of another restoration by Augustus, of which there is no record.


See also

*
List of aqueducts in the city of Rome This is a list of ancient Roman aqueducts in the city of Rome. Introduction In order to meet the water needs of its population, the city of Rome was eventually supplied with 11 aqueducts by 226 AD, which were some of the city's greatest engine ...
*
List of aqueducts in the Roman Empire This is a list of aqueducts in the Roman Empire. For a more complete list of known and possible Roman aqueduct The Romans constructed aqueducts throughout their Republic and later Empire, to bring water from outside sources into cities a ...
*
List of Roman aqueducts by date This is a list of aqueducts in the city of Rome listed in chronological order of their construction. Ancient Rome Modern Rome * Acqua Vergine Antica ** built in 1453 ** source: springs in Salone, east of Rome ** length: ; underground from ...
*
Parco degli Acquedotti The Parco degli Acquedotti ("Park of the Aqueducts") is a public park to the southeast of Rome, Italy. It is part of the Appian Way Regional Park and is of approximately 240 ha. Description The park is named after the aqueducts that run thro ...
*
Ancient Roman technology Ancient Roman technology is the collection of techniques, skills, methods, processes, and engineering practices which supported Roman civilization and made possible the expansion of the economy and military of ancient Rome (753 BC – 476 AD). ...
*
Roman engineering The ancient Romans were famous for their advanced engineering accomplishments. Technology for bringing running water into cities was developed in the east, but transformed by the Romans into a technology inconceivable in Greece. The architecture ...


References


External links

{{Monuments of Rome 33 BC Buildings and structures completed in the 1st century BC
Julia Julia may refer to: People *Julia (given name), including a list of people with the name *Julia (surname), including a list of people with the name *Julia gens, a patrician family of Ancient Rome *Julia (clairvoyant) (fl. 1689), lady's maid of Qu ...